Meet the Creative Director You’ve Probably Never Heard of But Who’s Work You've Definitely Seen.
We sit down with Samuel Muir, Creative Director and Designer for the likes of Calvin Harris, Jessie Ware and even Byron Burger to talk about starting out, freelancing and an industry where the artists remain unknown despite their work gaining international recognition.
It's been a pretty crazy few months for Sam Muir as he prepared for his creative vision to take shape in the form of singer Jessie Ware's critically acclaimed new album 'Glasshouse'. He describes to me the process whereby he must have a clear concept for the overall project for it to be expanded out across all platforms; "It isn't just about an album cover, it's about the single cover and live shows to coincide with the project. It's a process but I love it," explains Muir as we sit down over a coffee.
"I had a pretty vivid imagination"
Upon meeting Sam it's easy to just assume him to be your average 41 year old bloke; beautiful wife, two young kids and freshly moved into his newly renovated house in East London, his life seems sweet although rather average. Behind the 'normal guy' façade however is an artist who has worked with some of music's biggest names and designed for well known brands we see everyday.
Hailing from New Zealand, Muir always had a keen artistic eye, something he begins his chat with me about with great enthusiasm. "I could always draw really well as a kid and grew up without a TV, so I had a pretty vivid imagination," he recalls as we talk about the initial spark that got the creative juices flowing.
Working as a creative director in the music industry was always a dream for Muir, who started out doing free work to promote raves in New Zealand after finishing art college. "I wanted to work in music, so I went out and met all the rave promoters and offered to design all their flyers for free (it was the 90’s). Eventually they started paying - but free entry to raves was payment enough. The first one I got properly paid for was Goldie’s NZ tour."
"I wanted to flex my own style and be my own boss."
After two successful years of working in a studio in New Zealand, Muir turned his sights to London where the clients were bigger and money was better. Spending seven years in graphic design studios in the city's centre, he eventually decided to go freelance for a number of reasons; "the main one being I didn’t want to answer to anyone creatively. I wanted to flex my own style and be my own boss."
Starting a freelance business from scratch was no mean feat however as Sam delves into the challenges he faced when going it alone. "It’s a challenge, building a client roster, keeping yourself creatively fulfilled, and running it as a business - because it’s all down to you. But if you can be fun and engaging, and have a decent knowledge of pop culture, you can make it work as a business."
It wasn't long before Muir's passion and determination landed him contracts with major stars such as Deadmaus and Calvin Harris. Starting out by designing elements for the artists' live shows, Sam's work began to gain the attention of industry experts who eventually approached him to be Creative Director to Calvin Harris' smash album 'Motion'.
Being creative director on 'Motion' was a pivital point in Sam's career as he faced an influx of offers by major brands, festivals and artists from all corners of the world to work with him. Samuel Muir Studios had officially become a hughly respected name in the industry. 'I love variation, so my work is all over the place, stylistically. I don't put anything out that I’m not proud of."
Working with the likes of Byron Burger for their cookbook, Hove and SecretSundaze festivals and continued work as Creative Director for Calvin Harris, Sam's work had reached an international audience who knew nothing of the wizard behind the magic.
"Ideas are more important than ever."
A higher demand in cliental led to pressures to create unique content from scratch which was a not in the least difficult, but manageable task for Muir, who cites his best clients are those with strong ideas. "I have a lot of celebrity / DJ / music clients - but I most enjoy working with entrepreneurs who have genuine ideas the most. There world is full of start-ups at the moment and actual ideas are getting scarce."
Sam's preference to work with clients who have genuine ideas stems from a number of difficulties facing the world of graphic design and creative direction in today's society. With ever-changing developments in technology forcing artists to consistently update their practice or risk losing impact, the challenge to stay unique and current is now more important than ever.
"Technology’s influence on design started out well; Photoshop, Illustrator and all the like. But it’s lead to a situation where design is democratised, and anyone can make an image look good, thanks to the proliferation of Instagram, etc. Ideas are more important than ever."
Top three tips for entering the industry?
"Be clever with your ideas, be irreverent with brands and most of all be nice to your clients."
Looking to the future Sam hopes to maintain the momentum he has built around his company, working with high profile clients and furthering a healthy roster whilst adding to his impressive portfolio.
For now however, what next for Samuel Muir Studios?
"A holiday," he laughs before taking a phonecall and resuming his hectic life.